Since Hiruluk's death, no one had visited her place except Chopper.
Although the islanders knew her approximate location, they didn't know her exact whereabouts.
Furthermore, the villagers wouldn't come here to find her, as that would attract Walpol.
Walpol had been looking for her all along!
This was why she was so wary of the sudden knock on the door.
She was already considering that if Walpol's guards had found this place, she and Chopper would have to abandon it and move elsewhere.
"Mmm!"
As if sensing the tension of the old and young inside, Sora pulled back his right hand, stroked his chin, and thought for a moment before speaking, "We are travelers from another island. We came across this place and were curious why such a secluded spot would have a treehouse like this, so we ventured to disturb you."
"From another island?"
Kureha looked at the door and after thinking for a moment, she walked over.
Creeeak—!
The old wooden door of the treehouse opened from the inside outwards. The wooden door, due to its age, was not very flexible, and let out a sharp, piercing squeal.
The wooden door opened wide, and the warm air from inside poured out, dispelling the cold around Sora and the two standing at the entrance.
Sora rubbed his hands, looked up at Kureha, and said softly, "Esteemed elder, you are the owner here, aren't you? Could you let us in to rest for a while?"
Kureha's nose and chin were particularly sharp. If she wore a hood, she would definitely look like a witch, no wonder everyone called her a witch.
Kureha raised her hand and pushed her sunglasses up onto her forehead.
"Oh!"
When she lowered her head and clearly saw the appearances of Sora and Kuina, her expression suddenly changed slightly, and her body stiffened.
Drum Island was a winter island, and the population was not very large, so there was no dedicated port for passing pirate ships and merchant ships.
Therefore, news could only be conveyed through news birds.
A few months ago, Sora's news was delivered to the whole world by Morgans, including Drum Island, so Kureha had seen Sora and Kuina in the newspaper.
However, thinking that such a great pirate was so polite to her, she figured he wouldn't be a heinous pirate.
Moreover, the newspaper also stated that Sora and his crew had clashed with the World Government and the Navy to save Bass.
Thinking of this, her expression quickly returned to normal.
She said calmly to Sora, "I've seen you in the newspapers. Your name is Sora, right?"
"Mmm!"
Sora nodded.
"And you just called me an elder, right?"
"Mmm!"
Sora continued to nod.
Then he looked up at Kureha in confusion, "What's wrong? Elder."
Kureha frowned, raised the axe in her hand, and threw it at Sora.
"Go to hell! Brat, watch what you say!"
"Uh!"
Sora blinked, red light flashed in his eyes, his head swayed left and right, and he easily dodged the axe Kureha threw at him.
Then he looked up, staring at Kureha, who had suddenly become enraged for no apparent reason, with a head full of question marks.
"What's wrong?"
Kureha grabbed a bottle of wine from the table beside her, tilted her head back, and took a few large gulps.
"Hoo~"
Then she looked at Sora and said earnestly, "I am still a young and beautiful person over a hundred and thirty years old!"
"Uh!"
"Quack quack quack...???"
A flock of crows flew over Sora's head, and his question marks increased.
He stared at Kureha, his mouth twitching.
"You got angry just because of that."
"Otherwise?"
Kureha looked at Sora, the corners of her mouth turned up, and a smile appeared on her face.
"Hehehehehe!! I'm still very young, brat."
"Alright!"
Sora shrugged helplessly, looked up at Kureha, and said, "You win. I'll call you beautiful, okay!"
He tidied his appearance, looked at Kureha with a serious expression, "Hello beautiful, could you let us in to rest for a while?"
After speaking, he opened his mouth and smiled at Kureha, his face as sincere as it could be, as if Kureha were indeed a beautiful woman.
"Hahahahaha!!"
Guina looked at Sora and Kureha and couldn't hold back her laughter.
Her crisp laughter, like wind chimes, was like a melodious piece of music played in the depths of this lonely forest, making the mountains, the giant trees, and the snow no longer lonely.
Kureha stared at Sora and burst into laughter.
"What an interesting brat!"
She stopped laughing, leaned to the side, and moved away from the door.
"Come in! It must be cold standing outside!"
The less she said, the better. As soon as she said it, Guina's laughter immediately stopped, and she couldn't help but shiver.
The warmth inside was incomparable to the cold outside!
Even though the warm air had the upper hand the moment the door opened, the subsequent cold wind, mixed with snowflakes, poured into the room like a cascading stream.
Sora glanced at Guina, quickly took her hand, and walked quickly past Kureha into the wooden door.
Creeeak—!
Seeing that Sora and the two had entered the house, Kureha quickly pulled the wooden door shut, blocking out all the boundless wind and snow from outside.
Indeed, the cold disappeared immediately after entering the house.
Sora released Guina's hand, looked around, and finally his gaze landed on the large fireplace on the right wall, a hint of curiosity flashing in his eyes.
Not only had they hollowed out the tree, but they had also started a fire inside for warmth. The trees on this island were quite magical.
Thinking of this, he reached out and touched the wall next to him.
It wasn't cold.
It was surprisingly warm.
This tree could actually keep out the cold.
This was rather unbelievable.
He wondered if it could also be used as a boat.
Thinking of this, he turned his head, looked at Kureha sitting on the sofa, and asked curiously, "Hey! Beautiful..."
"That's enough."
Kureha looked at Sora with amusement, interrupted him, and said, "Stop calling me beautiful all the time. I know I'm young and beautiful, but you don't have to keep calling me that, brat!"
As she spoke, she raised the wine bottle and took a few more sips.
It was obvious that she was an old drunkard.
She exhaled a breath of alcohol and looked at Sora and Guina, smiling, "Brat, do you want to know the secret to my eternal youth? Hehehehehe!!"
"No."
Guina looked at Kureha and replied coolly, "I'm only sixteen years old, so it's too early for me to worry about my appearance."
Sora shrugged his shoulders and nodded, agreeing with Guina's words.
"Uh!"
Kureha's hand holding the wine bottle froze, and then she nonchalantly tilted her head back.
Gulp gulp gulp gulp gulp!!
After a few large gulps, a blush appeared on Kureha's face and quickly disappeared.
Bang—!
Then she placed the wine bottle heavily on the coffee table in front of her, looked up at Sora and the two.
"Enough with the jokes! I know you are pirates, great pirates. I assume you must have come here for a reason!"
She was nearly a hundred and forty years old, she had seen all sorts of people!
Although she didn't feel any malice from Sora and the two, she knew that Sora wouldn't have come here by accident.
With that clumsy excuse, as soon as Sora opened his mouth, she knew it was fake.
"Uh!"
"Alright!"
Sora nodded helplessly, "We came specifically to see you and a blue-nosed reindeer."
"A blue-nosed reindeer."
Kureha was startled and looked up at Sora.
"The villagers told you, didn't they!"
Sora hesitated slightly.
"This..."
He looked up at Kureha and said with a light laugh, "What if I told you that I dreamed of a blue-nosed reindeer here in my dream, would you..."
"Do you believe it?"